Prevention and Treatment Methods for Common Perinatal Diseases in Dairy Cattle
1. Endometritis This is an important cause of infertility in dairy cattle, and is divided into acute and chronic types. It is caused by the invasion of bacteria and other microorganisms after the cow gives birth (including miscarriage and difficult calving management) or after mating. Brucellosis, trichomoniasis, and improper handling and drug stimulation can all be triggering factors.
Prevention and treatment: Flushing the uterus is an effective method for treating chronic and acute inflammation. Optional drugs include physiological saline, potassium permanganate, furacilin, rivanol, chlorhexidine and other solutions, followed by infusion of antibiotics such as penicillin, streptomycin, chlortetracycline, etc.
2. Retained placenta If the placenta still cannot be expelled more than 24 hours after a dairy cow gives birth, it is called retained placenta. It is often caused by multiple factors such as nutritional deficiency, excessive feeding of concentrated feed, insufficient exercise in dairy cattle, old age, excessive milking in the previous lactation leading to extremely poor body condition, and the cow having previously suffered from endometritis.
Prevention and treatment: After confirmation by rectal examination, surgical manual detachment is mostly used for treatment. After surgical detachment, perform uterine flushing multiple times, and at the same time place antibiotic drugs such as oxytetracycline and tetracycline into the uterus. In severe cases, antibiotics are also used to control systemic symptoms. When surgical detachment cannot be performed, hypertonic saline can be infused into the uterus to promote spontaneous separation and shedding.
3. Premature birth and miscarriage This refers to the disruption of the gestational relationship between the embryo or fetus and the mother, causing pregnancy to be interrupted. Interruption before 210 days of gestation is called miscarriage, and interruption occurring at 210 to 269 days of gestation is called premature birth. There are many causes. General miscarriage (interruption of nutrition between mother and offspring, reproductive hormone secretion disorders, mechanical, toxic, etc.) is mostly caused by improper feeding and management or unbalanced dietary nutrition.
Prevention and treatment: Prevention should start from improving feeding and management, early detection of sick cattle and complete treatment, and reducing operational contamination (before calving, after calving, and during mating). If signs of miscarriage are discovered in advance, drugs can be used to prevent miscarriage, such as progesterone, chloral hydrate, and oral administration of Chinese herbal medicine. If miscarriage has already occurred, efforts should be made to assist delivery and prevent uterine inflammation.
4. Vaginal prolapse This refers to relaxation of the vaginal wall and backward displacement of the vagina, causing the vestibule to protrude from the vulva or the entire vagina to turn inside out. It is mainly due to insufficient crude fiber in the feed and dysfunction of the digestive organs and liver, leading to muscle relaxation. An excessive slope of the cow bed, an oversized fetus, and improper assistance during delivery can also cause relaxation of reproductive organ tissues. When the cow lies down, part of the vagina protrudes outside the vulva, and the exposure increases with the increase in months of gestation. It is mostly caused by inflammation of the vaginal mucosa leading to tissue necrosis, secondary systemic infection, and long-term infertility.
Prevention and treatment: In the later stage of gestation, place the dairy cow on a bed that is lower in front and higher in the rear to elevate the hindquarters; reducing pressure on the hindquarters can help relieve it. Frequently wash the vulva with drugs to prevent inflammation. When prolapse occurs due to straining during calving, a restraint belt can be used for restraint, and surgical treatment can also be performed.
5. Follicular cyst This refers to degeneration of the epithelium of an unovulated follicle, thickening and proliferation of the follicular wall, increase in follicular fluid, and enlargement of the follicular cavity. It is mostly caused by feeding high-energy and high-protein diets, excessively high nutritional levels, little light, insufficient exercise, and excessive body fat in cattle, which trigger hormonal secretion disorders (imbalance between follicle-stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone), as well as improper artificial use of estrogen.
Prevention and treatment: Early use of hormone therapy gives the best results. Intravenous injection of chorionic gonadotropin, intramuscular injection of luteinizing hormone or progesterone can be used.